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The Battery Controlled: Understanding One of the Biggest Dangers in Your Home

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This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of The Motherhood. All opinions are my own.

“Carla says her one-year-old was playing with the remote. Three days later, doctors found its battery in his throat. Ten surgeries, 100 x-rays, and nine weeks in the ICU later. Two inches of his esophagus (were) removed.”

That shocking story is part of the “Emmitt’s Story” video (view it at the bottom this entry) created by the folks at Energizer as part of their battery safety program called “The Battery Controlled.” The Battery Controlled is an effort from Energizer and Safe Kids Worldwide to alert parents and other caregivers to the hidden danger of coin-sized button battery ingestion.

To be honest, I was aware of the hazards that little objects pose as a chocking risk to toddlers, but I hadn’t really considered the specific dangers of the small coin-sized batteries found in many common household objects.

The facts are downright scary: Every year, approximately 3,500 incidents of button batteries being swallowed are reported to poison control centers in the U.S.  In 2012, 17 severe injuries and even two deaths were reported.

Children under four are the most risk when it comes to the dangers of button batteries and the number of cases resulting in serious injury has more than quadrupled in the past five years. The risk goes well beyond being a simple choking hazard. When one of these batteries gets stuck in a child’s throat, the saliva triggers an electrical current. This causes a chemical reaction that can cause serious burns to the esophagus in as little as two hours.

To help keep your little one safe, remember the FOUR S’s of battery safety:

STORE devices that use coin lithium batteries out of reach of children

SELECT battery packaging that complies with the child-resistant packaging standards and recommendations made by the staff at the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, such as Energizer coin lithium battery packaging

SECURE the battery compartments of devices and look for devices that contain a child safety feature for their battery doors, such as a screw or child-resistant mechanism. 

SHARE this information with your friends and family. A recent survey revealed that 62 percent of parents are not aware of the dangers of coin lithium battery ingestions.

If you think your child has swallowed a battery, go the emergency room IMMEDIATELY. Tell the doctor you think your child might have swallowed a coin-sized battery (if you can, tell the doctor the identification number on the battery’s package). Do NOT induce vomiting, and do NOT let your child eat or drink until an X-ray is complete.

In which devices are these dangerous batteries commonly found? You can find them in flameless candles, car key fobs, greeting cards, bathroom scales, calculators, small remote controls, booklights and thermometers.

For more information about battery safety, visit Energizer’s The Battery Controlled website or check out their handy infograph. The video below is an eye-opener, but the “Coin Lithium Battery Safety” video is also helpful. Plus join us to learn more about the 4 S’s of battery safety at the #BatteryControlled  Twitter party 9/24 at 12p ET here. You can also follow along on Facebook and Twitter for more tips, news and updates.

The post The Battery Controlled: Understanding One of the Biggest Dangers in Your Home appeared first on Motherhood on the Rocks.


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